O how many blessed favors the merciful God and our Lord Jesus Christ grant us while we sleep on oblivious to their work!
I am immediately aware of the passing time. Isn't it funny though that we only notice the passing time after it has gone? We don't really stop during something fun to think about the time going by; we do reflect on fond memories and look forward to the days ahead. But each seemingly insignificant moment is a treasure. God just did something wonderful for us.
We often look for the visible signs. The beautiful things we hope to find, the peace we hope to receive. We are told to seek silence in order to listen to God. And so we do. We pray in those silent moments, and we grow close to God. We do recognize those little blessings scattered throughout our day, and are filled with faith and love because of them. These small, visible signs from Jesus do that to us.
But what about the secret signs? What about the blessings in our sleep, the blessings we don't even realize? Think about this: you're crossing a street and don't get hit by a car. That's a blessing. We can't wait for a near collision to thank Jesus for keeping us safe. Every moment that we breathe and exist is a blessing from God. He is working miracles during every second, so many that we cannot even notice them.
I caution you to think about the many bonds from which the Lord has freed you and all the other snares set by the devil that you did not suspect he saved you from ... Let us imagine you sallied forth to battle...and you realized your danger was as great as [thieves and beasts] and as vulnerable to death as they, yet somehow you escaped safe and unharmed...
Often in the very moment we offend God, he considers how he must free us from offense and blame and acts so secretly that no mortal can discern it, yet every Christian can believe it and render public thanks for the private [unseen] favors.
Jesus does everything for us. We should do everything in our lives for God.
Inspiration for this post, and the quotes above come from Father Francisco de Osuna (+c. 1540).
Amazing post, Liz, and so thought-provoking. At the end of a bad day, when I can't think of any blessings that came my way, I can still thank God for all the precious things I didn't notice.
ReplyDeleteAwesome! I never thought of these things! Usually I'm just a little too oblivious to all that God is doing for me.
ReplyDeleteSometimes it's easy to be oblivious! But that's why, when you do stop and think about it, it feels much sweeter, and you do build a greater appreciation and a greater faith. :)
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